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Jets in tough to make playoffs after ‘brutal’ loss to Rangers

New York Rangers v Winnipeg Jets

New York Rangers v Winnipeg Jets

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Lost in all the controversy surrounding Dustin Byfuglien’s crosscheck to the head of J.T. Miller was the fact the Winnipeg Jets lost in regulation last night, falling 3-2 to the Rangers on a goal by Chris Kreider with less than four minutes remaining.

It was the second straight painful loss for the Jets, who fell 4-3 to Chicago on Sunday on a goal by Jonathan Toews with just 31 seconds remaining, and it dealt a serious blow to Winnipeg’s chances of making the playoffs.

“This is brutal, to be honest,” said forward Mathieu Perreault, per the Winnipeg Free Press. “It’s unacceptable, really, at this time of the season. We’ve just got to regroup and put it behind us because it’s going to do us no good to keep thinking about those two games.

“We’ve got to bear down, especially at the end of the games. It’s unacceptable.”

As we noted yesterday, the Jets had a comfortable playoff cushion coming out of the All-Star break. Tomorrow, they could be bumped out of the final wild-card spot if the Kings beat the Oilers at Staples Center. According to Sports Club Stats, their postseason chances have fallen below 50/50 to 48.6 percent.

It’s estimated the Jets will have to go around 3-2-0 in their final five games to get in. They have two home games remaining, versus Vancouver and Calgary, and three road contests left, in Minnesota, St. Louis and Colorado.

Winnipeg is now 13-12-4 since the All-Star break.

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